The Effects of Covid-19 on Welsh Language Community Groups - Survey Findings

SOCIAL RESEARCH NUMBER: 76/2020 PUBLICATION DATE: 10/12/2020

The effects of Covid-19 on Welsh language community groups - survey findings

Mae’r ddogfen yma hefyd ar gael yn Gymraeg. This document is also available in Welsh.

The effects of Covid-19 on Welsh language community groups – survey findings

Lisa Walters, Catrin Redknap, Mirain Rhys, Sali Islwyn, Martin Parry, Patience Jones, Iwan Davies

Full Research Report: L Walters, C Redknap, M Rhys, S Islwyn, M Parry, P Jones, I Davies (2020). The effects of Covid-19 on Welsh language community groups - survey findings: Welsh Government, GSR report number 76/2020 Available at: https://gov.wales/effects-covid-19-welsh-language-community- groups-survey-results

Views expressed in this report are those of the researchers and not necessarily those of the Welsh Government

For further information please contact: Lisa Walters Knowledge and Analytical services Welsh Government Cathays Park Cardiff CF10 3NQ Tel: 03000 256282 Email: [email protected]

Contents

List of charts...... 2 1. Introduction ...... 3 2. Methodology ...... 4 3. Welsh language community groups before lockdown ...... 9 4. Lockdown and subsequent restrictions ...... 23 5. The experiences of groups that continued to operate ...... 30 6. The experiences of the groups that did not operate ...... 37 7. Views on the future of groups ...... 42 8. The new groups ...... 53 9. Conclusions ...... 54 Annex: The effects of Covid-19 on Welsh language community groups - questionnaire ..... 58

List of charts Chart 3.1: Number of community groups that responded to the survey ...... 9 Chart 3.2: Where are the Welsh language community groups located? ...... 11 Chart 3.3: Percentage of each type of group that receives support from the Mentrau Iaith . 12 Chart 3.4: Percentage of groups reliant on volunteers, by type of group ...... 14 Chart 3.5: Numbers involved in the groups, by type of group ...... 15 Chart 3.6: Meeting frequency, by type of group ...... 16 Chart 3.7: Numbers attending groups increasing or decreasing, by type of group ...... 17 Chart 3.8: Language usually used by the groups, by type of group ...... 19 Chart 3.9: Main activities held by the community groups ...... 20 Chart 3.10: Who attended each activity, by age...... 21 Chart 4.1: How activities have been carried out since lockdown, by type of activity ...... 24 Chart 4.2: How have the groups operated ...... 26 Chart 4.3: How groups have operated, by type of group ...... 27 Chart 5.1: How effective were the activities of the group during this period...... 31 Chart 5.2: How often the group ‘met’ since the beginning of lockdown...... 34 Chart 5.3: How people had participated in the group’s activities after the beginning of lockdown, compared with before that period...... 34 Chart 5.4: Has the language of the group changed since the beginning of lockdown...... 35 Chart 5.5: The participants of the group’s activities after the beginning of lockdown, compared with before that period...... 35 Chart 6.1: Reasons for not operating after the start of lockdown ...... 37 Chart 6.2: ‘Digital’ reasons for not operating after the start of lockdown ...... 38 Chart 6.3: Percentage of groups that said their reason for not operating was that their members felt unsafe or afraid, by type of group ...... 40 Chart 7.1: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules continued to be in place in a year’s time ...... 42 Chart 7.2: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules continued to be in place in a year’s time, by type of group ...... 43 Chart 7.3: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules were not in place in a year’s time, by type of group ...... 45 Chart 7.4: How the group will operate if the current social distancing rules were not in place in a year’s time, by type of group ...... 47 Chart 7.5: Did the groups learn any lessons, by type of group ...... 51

1. Introduction

1.1 Increasing the use of the Welsh language is one of the three strategic themes of Cymraeg 2050 (the Welsh Government strategy for the Welsh language). This includes increasing the social use of Welsh. The Welsh Government works in partnership with a number of organisations and agencies to achieve this aim. In addition to the organisations and societies working in a formal partnership with the Government, community groups, societies and clubs across Wales offer a range of opportunities for people to socialise, volunteer and engage with activities through the medium of Welsh.

1.2 Since March 2020, the coronavirus pandemic has transformed our way of life and had an impact on many aspects of everyday life in Wales. As a result of the pandemic, the Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language (as the Minister was known at the time) established three sub-groups focussing on the impact of Covid-19 on various elements of Cymraeg 2050. The aim of one of the sub- groups was to understand the impact on the use of Welsh in communities. To that end, this sub-group commissioned a survey of those community groups offering opportunities for people to socialise in Welsh, in order to understand the pandemic’s impact on them.

1.3 The survey was carried out online, and was completed by all kinds of organisations, committees, papers, clubs, Urdd groups, choirs and other community groups who were providing opportunities for people to use Welsh. They were asked questions about how the first national lockdown at the end of March 2020 and the following restrictions had impacted them; to what extent and how they adapted their activities, and what were their intentions for the future.

1.4 This report presents the survey findings.

1.5 The intention is for the survey findings to provide the foundation for the Welsh Government and its partners to further explore what needs to be done to protect opportunities to use Welsh at community level in the future.

2. Methodology

Survey design 2.1 The topic areas of the survey were agreed with members of the Increasing the Use of Welsh Sub-group, before the questions were drafted by Welsh Government officials. In order to gather as much information as possible, it was decided that the questionnaire would include a number of opportunities for respondents to enter information in the form of free text as well as providing quantitative information by selecting from the tick box answers provided.

2.2 There was a further period of consultation with members of the Sub-group, as well as with the ‘Mentrau Iaith’ and Welsh Language Commissioner officials before the questionnaire was finalised. The survey questions can be found in Annex A.

2.3 Due to the restrictions imposed in response to the pandemic itself, and in order to gather the findings as soon as possible, the survey was designed to be carried out online. The online questionnaire and survey design software SmartSurvey was used.

2.4 The survey was available in Welsh and English according to the respondent’s choice.

2.5 Before the survey was carried out, there was a pilot with three community groups associated with one Menter Iaith, and the questions were amended after receiving their comments.

Survey administration 2.6 Usually when conducting a survey of people, homes or businesses we have some information about the ‘total population’ of potential responders, as we have official statistics which can inform us about them. However we do not have an official list of all community groups which could be used as a ‘sampling frame’ for this survey. We therefore enlisted the help of Mentrau Iaith to reach as many of these Welsh language community groups as possible.

2.7 Mentrau Iaith are community-based organisations who work to raise the profile of the Welsh language in their local area. There are 22 Mentrau Iaith, and most (but not all) operate in an area defined by the areas of the local authorities. As the Mentrau have a good understanding of the community groups that operate in Welsh in their areas, they were asked to draw up a list of all the groups they were aware of, and distribute the online survey to them.

2.8 The Welsh language landscape is very different across Wales – in terms of the numbers and percentages of speakers, opportunities to use Welsh, and whether these opportunities are planned or arise in a more organic way in the community. Therefore, it will be difficult to ensure that groups who are ‘known’ to the Mentrau will be similar across all areas. For example in Gwynedd, where a very high proportion of people speak Welsh, groups operate in Welsh naturally and without the involvement of the Menter iaith. However, for areas where the proportion of Welsh speakers is not as high, and where there are fewer Welsh language community groups, these groups will have a greater association with the Menter Iaith. Some new groups were also formed during the pandemic or in the months leading up to it, which may not have been known to the Mentrau at the time of this survey.

2.9 We will not know exactly how many community groups there are in Wales who operate in Welsh. However, the Mentrau Iaith have informed the Welsh Government of 2,806 of these groups. We can therefore note that at least this many of them are in existence. By using some other sources of information available to us about some types of community groups (e.g. administrative data gathered by the Welsh Government), we estimate that the true number of community groups is at least a few hundred more on top of that figure.

2.10 Due to the survey being administered online, we were very aware that there could be a bias in the kinds of community groups able to respond in this way. We were aware that groups lacking in the necessary digital skills could be excluded from the survey, and that these could be exactly the kinds of community groups who would also have struggled to operate during the pandemic. The Mentrau Iaith were therefore asked to contact the community groups who hadn’t responded, offering to help them complete the survey on the phone.

Covid-19 restrictions at the time of the survey 2.11 The survey was carried out between 14th September and 9th October. Over the summer the Covid-19 restrictions had been gradually relaxing. However following a sharp increase in cases of the virus in some areas in early September, local restrictions began being imposed. Caerphilly was the first local authority to enter a local lockdown from the 8th of September, followed by Rhondda Cynon Taf on the 17th September. During the survey period local restrictions were imposed on 15 other areas in Wales.

2.12 For the areas with local restrictions:

 People were not allowed to enter or leave their local areas without a reasonable excuse, such as travel for work or education;  Up to 30 people could meet outdoors, whilst maintaining social distancing of two metres.  People could only meet people they didn’t live with outdoors.  They were not able to form, or be in, an extended household;

2.13 The restrictions in place for other areas in Wales during this period were:

 Up to four households could form one ‘extended household’.  A maximum of six people from their extended household were able to meet indoors at any one time (including in pubs and restaurants). This did not include children under 11 years old.  People could only meet another household, outside their ‘extended household’, outdoors.

2.14 In all parts of Wales:

 All licensed premises were required to stop selling alcohol at 10pm  Everyone aged over 11 were required to wear face coverings in indoor public areas.  People were advised to observe 2m social distancing, wash hands regularly and to work from home if possible.

Analysing the evidence 2.15 There were 1,092 responses to the survey, which is just over a third of the groups that the Mentrau Iaith were aware of. It should be noted, however, that we don’t know exactly how many community groups exist in reality. It is likely therefore that this number of responses represents much less than a third of all groups in existence.

2.16 The analysis of the free text responses followed these steps:

 Familiarisation with the evidence provided for each question by reading the responses thoroughly and making notes about emerging issues or topics.

 Developing a coding system for each question, and identifying key areas and issues in the evidence. The thematic analysis guidance by Braun & Clarke (2006) was used to inform this work.1

 Where possible, thematic maps were produced based on the identified codes. These maps were used as a guide when reporting on the evidence. It should be noted however that the report does not include a fully developed thematic analysis.

2.17 The analysis of the evidence was carried out jointly by a number of individuals. In order to ensure a common understanding and a consistent analysis approach there were regular meetings between team members. One team member was appointed to check around 10% of the responses to each question in order to ensure a consistent approach across all questions at the end of the coding stage, to review the maps, and to check the quality of the reporting approach. This was done in consultation with the rest of the analysis team.

Caveats 2.18 As stated in 2.9, we don’t know exactly how many community groups are in existence, therefore we don’t know how representative the findings are of all community groups.

2.19 This was a self-completion survey. Two groups that are very similar in nature may have categorised themselves as different kinds of groups.

2.20 The responses may only reflect the views of the individual completing the survey, rather than the views of the overall group. It is likely that the individuals completing the survey may be more involved with the group than other members of the group. As a result, they may have different views about the future of the group or the success of their activities during this period.

2.21 As noted in Section 3, it appears that some types of groups were more likely than others to respond to the survey. The community groups that responded to the survey may also be different to those groups that didn’t respond.

1 Braun, V. and Clarke, V. (2006) ‘Using thematic analysis in psychology’, Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), p.77- 101, DOI: 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

2.22 Any findings from the survey should therefore be viewed as indicators of what may be happening to the community groups during this time rather than definitive findings.

2.23 The following considerations regarding the evidence collected via the free text boxes should be noted:

 The evidence is based on information that respondents chose to provide.

 It’s not possible to find out more about the experiences of those who didn’t offer any additional information, or to find out about other experiences of those who offered information, i.e. the evidence is limited to what some respondents chose to share about specific issues.

 Consideration also needs to be given to the potential of special circumstances causing respondents to offer or not offer additional information. For example, some respondents may have wanted to only share positive or negative experiences.

2.24 In light of the above considerations, any findings from the survey should be viewed as indicators of what may be happening to the community groups during this period, rather than a complete and definitive picture. The additional evidence provided via the free text boxes do not necessarily offer a complete and balanced picture of the experiences of the groups that took part in the survey, but does add to the information gathered via the quantitative evidence.

3. Welsh language community groups before lockdown

How many and what types of Welsh language community groups are in existence 3.1 With support from the Mentrau Iaith (as stated in paragraphs 2.6-2.9) and their knowledge of their areas, we were informed of the existence of 2,806 groups. After receiving survey responses, the Mentrau Iaith were able to inform us of the types of groups that, based on their understanding, had not responded.

3.2 Chart 3.1 shows how many of each type of group (known to the Mentrau Iaith) had responded to the survey.

Chart 3.1: Number of community groups that responded to the survey

3.3 Of those groups identified by the Mentrau Iaith, less than a third of the religious groups, Urdd groups, groups for the area, sports clubs, fundraising clubs and social initiatives responded. Around two thirds of the social groups, learning groups and community papers responded. It seems therefore that some types of community groups were more likely than others to respond to this survey. This may also be an indication of the types of groups that have continued to operate during the survey period. It is important therefore to bear this in mind when analysing the survey findings.

3.4 A number of community councils have responded to this survey. These were not the community groups that were originally intended to complete this survey, and so they have not been included in the number of Welsh language community groups noted above. The vast majority of these community groups were from one local authority and so were not representative of all community councils in Wales, however as they face similar issues to community groups we have included their responses in our findings

3.5 As stated in paragraph 2.9, by using some other sources of information available to us about types of community groups (e.g. administrative data gathered by the Welsh Government), we estimate that the true number of community groups is at least a few hundred more on top of the number identified by the Mentrau Iaith for this survey.

3.6 ‘Interest groups’ included societies, political and language groups, as well as hobby groups (sewing, gardening etc.). ‘Social groups’ included groups who met to chat. These were often described as ‘lunch clubs’ ‘coffee and chat’ groups or ‘pub groups’ and were sometimes designed to provide Welsh learners with an opportunity to practice their Welsh or sometimes a social group for Welsh speakers. ‘Performance groups’ included drama, dance and theatre groups. ‘Groups, clubs or organisations for the area’ included, rotary clubs, groups responsible for a town hall, centre or park, as well as clubs or societies who organised events or activities for a particular areas. The name of the area would often appear in the group name.

3.7 Chart 3.1 shows the full list of group categories, however in future charts, the groups have been further combined to reduce the categories for analysis purposes.

3.8 Groups organising ‘eisteddfodau’ and ‘festivals’ were combined into one group, the reading clubs, art, culture or history and literary clubs were combined with the other

‘interest groups’, and the ‘walking clubs’ and ‘sports clubs’ were combined and named ‘sports clubs and outdoor activities’.

Where are the groups located? 3.9 The areas with the highest proportion and number of Welsh speakers also identified the largest number of Welsh language community groups.

3.10 Ceredigion, Gwynedd and Carmarthenshire identified the highest number of Welsh language community groups.

Chart 3.2: Where are the Welsh language community groups located?

(a) Some community groups may work across multiple areas. Also, the community councils are excluded from this chart due to the reasons stated in 3.4

Mentrau Iaith support 3.11 Many Welsh language community groups are supported by the Mentrau Iaith in some way. It might be that they are groups set up and organised by the Mentrau Iaith, or that the Mentrau Iaith provide some assistance when required. The community groups who responded to the survey were asked whether their group was run or supported by a Menter Iaith. 23% of the groups who responded to this survey, said ‘Yes’, 71% ‘No’ and a further 6% ‘Didn’t know’.

3.12 This varied by area, with areas with around one in ten of the community groups in Swansea, Wrexham, Powys, Gwynedd and Ceredigion Gwynedd and Ceredigion being supported by a Menter Iaith. And around 4 in 10 in Torfaen, Blaenau Gwent, Monmouthshire and Carmarthenshire and almost 6 in 10 of the Welsh language community groups in Newport being supported by Mentrau Iaith.

3.13 This also varied by the type of group as shown in Chart 3.3

Chart 3.3: Percentage of each type of group that receives some kind of support from the Mentrau Iaith

3.14 The reason this question was asked was to try to establish how many of the community groups do not receive support to operate. The Mentrau Iaith, Young farmers clubs, Merched y Wawr branches, Eisteddfodau, some Welsh language learning groups, Nursery groups and Community papers, receive some grant funding form the Welsh Government, and we therefore wanted to be able to identify the proportion of community groups who might not be receiving support.

New groups 3.15 The main aim of the research was to understand the impact of Covid-19 and the restrictions imposed in light of the pandemic on the community groups who operate in Welsh or promote the Welsh language. However we were aware that, since the beginning of the first UK-wide lockdown at the end of March 2020, some new groups had been established, some as a response to the pandemic. Capturing the experiences of these new groups, was not the main aim on this survey, however we have allowed newly formed groups to respond to the survey.

3.16 15 new groups did participate in this survey. They were not asked questions about the activities that they had managed or not managed to do since the end of March, but they were asked to describe how they operated, and what they thought would happen to their group in the future. This information can be found in section 8 of this report.

Volunteer roles in the groups 3.17 The groups that had formed before the end of March 2020 were asked whether they were run by volunteers and if so how many and how old were they. This question was asked to understand more about the types of groups that rely on a relatively small number or older volunteers.

3.18 Of the community groups who responded to this survey 55% reported that they were run by volunteers alone, 24% were groups where some of the organisers received a wage, and some volunteered, and 21% were groups where everyone involved in running the group received a wage.

3.19 Chart 3.4 shows the proportion of each type of group who were reliant on some or all the group organisers to volunteer.

Chart 3.4: Percentage of groups reliant on volunteers, by type of group

3.20 When completing this survey, these were the three main answer options available, however there was also an ‘other’ option where respondents could explain their set up. A number of the religious groups explained that it was only the Minister who was paid, with everyone else volunteering. Also for community councils a number of them explained that the clerk was paid, but the councillors were all volunteers.

3.21 On the whole, parent and child groups, learning groups, Urdd groups, nursery groups and social groups on tended to rely on fewer than 5 volunteers on average, whereas religious groups, sports groups, Young Farmers' Clubs and community papers tended to rely on around 20 volunteers or more.

3.22 Of the community groups who were run by at least some volunteers, in general, the groups with the oldest ‘volunteers’ were the religious groups, interest groups, community papers, groups for the areas, groups who organised eisteddfods and Merched y Wawr branches. The majority of the volunteers for these groups were over the age of 70.

3.23 Whereas groups intended for younger people, (i.e. youth and children’s groups, nursery groups, Urdd groups, parent and child groups and Young Farmers’ Clubs) tended to have younger organisers, with fewer than 10% of their volunteers in the ‘over 70’ age category.

How many engage with the community groups 3.24 To understand how many people participate in each type of group, the groups who responded to the survey were asked how many people were usually involved in their group. This is shown in Chart 3.5.

Chart 3.5: Numbers involved in the groups, by type of group

3.25 The groups shown in Chart 3.5 have been ordered from the groups that on average have the greatest number of participants to those with the fewest. Of the groups participating in this survey, over a third of the Young Farmers’ Clubs, Choirs, Urdd groups and Sports or outdoor recreation clubs involved 40 or more participants.

3.26 Groups such as community councils, learning groups or nursery groups tended to involve fewer participants with around half of them involving fewer than 10 people.

How often do the community groups meet 3.27 The groups were also asked how often the groups usually met. Around half of the groups who responded met at least every week (17% more often than once a week and 31% weekly). 7% met every fortnight, 27% every month, 11% less often than that and another 8% met on an ad-hoc basis. This is shown in Chart 3.6 by group type.

Chart 3.6: Meeting frequency, by type of group

3.28 The majority of the group types met weekly or more often than that. With nursery groups being most likely to meet most often, with many stating that they met most weekdays. Groups who organised eisteddfods or festivals met less frequently and were most likely to meet on an ad-hoc basis (i.e. leading up to the eisteddfod or festival being arranged). On the whole, community papers, community councils and Merched y Wawr branches were most likely to meet on a monthly basis.

Change in numbers attending 3.29 In order to ascertain the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the survey also asked to describe the trajectory of the group in the two years preceding the first lockdown (before March 2020). Were the numbers attending the group on the rise, or were they on the decline even before the pandemic. This was asked to identify the types of groups that had seen a reduction in their numbers due to the pandemic alone, and those who had already seen a reduction before the pandemic. This is shown by group type in Chart 3.7.

Chart 3.7: Numbers attending groups increasing or decreasing, by type of group

3.30 The majority (59%) of the groups who responded stated that their numbers were stable. 28% reported that their numbers had increased (17% a little, 11% significantly) and 13% stated that their numbers had reduced (11% a little and 2% significantly). Groups formed within the past 2 years did not answer this question.

3.31 Religious groups and community papers were the only two group types to have a higher proportion of their groups stating that their numbers had declined than had increased. Around half of the social groups, youth and children's groups, nursery groups had increased in numbers over the previous two years as well as around two fifths of Young Farmers’ Clubs

Group language 3.32 Before the survey was distributed, the Mentrau Iaith had tried to identify the community groups in their areas that operate in Welsh only, however we are aware that whilst some groups operate fully in Welsh, others can be bilingual and some might only offer a small opportunity to speak Welsh. The groups who participated in this survey were therefore asked to state what language their group usually operated.

3.33 Of the groups who responded to this survey, 63% reported that they always operated in Welsh, 17% Mainly in Welsh and 13% using an equal amount of Welsh and English. 6% reported mainly operating in English, with the remaining 2% always in English.

3.34 We have not removed the 8% of community groups who reported operating mainly or always in English from our survey findings, as their experiences as a community group responding to the pandemic will also be valuable for Welsh language community groups. However, they have been removed from the questions about the impact on the language of the group (section 5).

3.35 The language usually used by each group type is shown in Chart 3.8.

Chart 3.8: Language usually used by the groups, by type of group

3.36 The groups in Chart 3.8 have been ordered by the proportion of the Group type who usually used Welsh always or mainly. For the vast majority of the group types who responded, over there quarters of them operated mainly or always in Welsh.

3.37 The sports clubs and community councils who responded to this survey were the least likely to operate mainly or usually in Welsh.

Activities held by the community groups 3.38 The groups were asked what their main activities were prior to the first UK wide lockdown period (i.e. before March 2020). The activities carried out are shown in Chart 3.9.

Chart 3.9: Main activities held by the community groups (a)

(a) Note that the groups were able to select more than one activity, therefore the percentages do not add to 100%

3.39 By far the most common activity carried out by the community groups who responded to this survey was organising social events indoors. Only 2% of the groups who responded reported that they conducted any online activities before the end of March 2020.

Who attended the activities 3.40 The groups were also asked to describe the people who usually participated in those activities. Were they activities for young, old, males or females, were they family events, or activities for Welsh learners or businesses. The purpose of this was to identify the types of activities that groups had been able to continue or not continue arranging since March 2020, and to therefore identify the types of people who will have been hardest hit by the halting of those activities.

3.41 Chart 3.10 demonstrates the age profile of people who usually attended or participated in the activities. For each type of activity below, the bars chart are ordered by age, from the youngest age group (0-4 years) on the left to the oldest (70+) on the right.

Chart 3.10: Who attended each activity, by age

3.42 Chart 3.10, shows us that for the majority of these activities, the age distribution of the participants are fairly similar, with those aged 50 to 69 being most likely to participate. Parent and child groups are naturally most likely to be attended by children aged 4 or younger. Leisure activities are more likely to cater for children and young people. Festivals and eisteddfodau were seen as catering for families and people of all ages, as were ‘online activities’ (with the exception of the very young). Religious activities or meetings were usually attended by people aged over 70.

3.43 For all of the activities listed in Chart 3.10, with the exception of holding musical or other performance rehearsals, females were more likely to participate in the activities. Females were significantly more likely to organise fundraising campaigns, go on trips and to volunteer to help others in the community and were twice as likely to attend parent and child groups.

3.44 Most of the activities were not seen to be catering for businesses as such, however businesses were likely to get involved in festivals or eisteddfodau, the community paper and work to improve the area. Festivals and eisteddfodau and events or performances were the activities most likely to be seen as events for Welsh learners.

4. Lockdown and subsequent restrictions

Have the groups been able to hold activities?

4.1 Having listed the activities their community group carried out before March 2020, the groups participating in the survey were subsequently asked whether they had carried out any of those activities since the start of the UK-wide lockdown period (at the end of March 2020).

4.2 For all the activities noted, the vast majority (68%) had not been carried out at all since the start of the lockdown period. 16% explained that they had adapted the activity so it could be held online, 7% reported that they had suspended their activity at the start of the lockdown period, but had since restarted.

4.3 Note that this survey was carried out between 14 September and 9 October and that different restrictions were in place in different areas of Wales during the survey period – see 2.11 to 2.13 – therefore it’s difficult to be certain about the conditions at the time the survey was being completed.

4.4 5% of the activities had been adapted due to Covid-19, but not held online, 2% had adapted the activity so it could be held online at the start of lockdown, but had now returned to their usual practice, and 1% continued to hold their activity as usual.

4.5 The remaining 1% gave ‘other’ responses, of these the majority expressed that they had used a combination of the options provided, usually carrying out the activity or elements of the activity online as well as holding the activity outdoors. A number also expressed that they had held their activity outdoors in the summer, when the weather was nice, but had since stopped as the weather deteriorated.

4.6 How the activities had been carried out since the beginning of lockdown is shown by type of activity in Chart 4.1.

Chart 4.1: How activities have been carried out since lockdown, by type of activity

4.7 As is shown in Chart 4.1, for all types of activities except ‘online activities’, ‘producing a community paper’ or ‘volunteering to help others in the community’ the majority had not beet been held since the beginning of lockdown. 92% of organised trips had not taken place since the beginning of lockdown. Over 80% of the festivals / eisteddfodau, fundraising campaigns, events / performances, musical rehearsals and other performance rehearsals had also not taken place since the beginning of lockdown.

4.8 The most likely activities to be adapted to be held online were the learning activities, with 31% being adapted to be held online. 24% of those organising activities to improve their area adapted their activity to be held online and 21% of those producing community papers and those carrying out activities for groups with a shared interest adapted their activity to be held online.

4.9 The most likely activity to be adapted due to Covid-19, but not held online (usually held outdoors) was volunteering to help others in the community, with 23% adapting this activity but not for online. 15% of groups organising activities to improve their area, and 8% of leisure activities and outdoor social events adapted their activities due to Covid-19 but the activities weren’t held online.

4.10 By considering the type of people who used to attend or participate in each activity (as described in paragraphs 3.40 to 3.44), and looking at how these activities were held since lockdown, we can see whether certain groups of people have been affected more or less by the kinds of activities that were able or not able to continue.

4.11 Activities for children aged 0 to 4 were most likely to have been able to continue in some way, with 42% of those activities able to continue, compared to 32% of all activities. The main reason for this was that a higher proportion of these activities were able to resume by the time the survey was being completed.

4.12 Activities for learners were slightly more likely than all activities to have been able to continue (with 34% continuing, compared to 32% of all activities). A slightly higher proportion of activities for learners were able to be provided online.

4.13 Overall, activities for men and women in the younger or older age groups were affected in a similar way, with nearly the same proportion of activities able to continue since lockdown.

Have the groups been able to operate

4.14 Having been asked about the individual activities the community groups had been able to carry out since the end of March 2020, the groups participating in the survey were subsequently asked how their group had operated in its entirety. The responses are shown in Chart 4.2.

Chart 4.2: How have the groups operated (a)

(a) Note that the groups were able to select more than one response, therefore the responses do not add to 100%

4.15 Over half of the groups reported that they had not met as a group or that the group had been temporarily suspended. 40% expressed that they had ‘only kept in touch’ (e.g. through social media, e-mail, or telephone). Note that as respondents were able to select more than one response to this question, around a third of the groups who reported that they had not met, also selected that had ‘only kept in touch’

4.16 A quarter of the groups expressed that they had adapted their usual activity to be held online, while 13% of the groups reported holding new activities online. There was also some overlap between these responses, with a third of those who had adapted their activity to hold it online also expressing that they’d held new activities online.

4.17 4% reported that they had adapted their activities, but had not held them online, with a similar percentage 3% reporting to have carried out ‘new activities, but not online. Only 1% expressed that the lockdown had not affected their group. Most of these were nursery groups.

4.18 1% stated that their group had already ended. Note that the community groups that responded to the survey may be different from those who did not respond, and therefore we would expect that the true percentage of groups that have come to an end to be higher than this.

4.19 Chart 4.3 shows how groups have operated, by type of group. As it was possible to select more than one of the responses in chart 4.2, to help facilitate analysis of Chart 4.3 we’ve grouped them in four main categories:

- Not operating: groups who stated that they ended the group, have not met or have only kept in tough (but have not held any activities) - Unaffected/resumed: groups unaffected or those that suspended their activities but have managed to resume - Operating online: those that adapted their original activities or held new activities online - Operating but not online: those that adapted their original activities or have held new activities but not online Chart 4.3: How groups have operated, by type of group

4.20 Note that, for Chart 4.3, if a group stated that they had not met but also stated that they operated online, these groups have been categorised in the ‘operating online’ group.

4.21 Chart 4.3 shows that community groups who organise Eisteddfodau or festivals were most likely not to have operated at all since the end of March, with 9 in 10 of those who participated in the survey stating that they had either not met or had only kept in touch. This was followed by Urdd groups and fundraising groups with around three quarters of these groups stating that they had not operated since lockdown.

4.22 The Mentrau Iaith were most likely to have remained operational during this period, with the majority them adapting their activities to hold them online or by arranging new activities online. Around half of the learning groups, community papers and Young Farmers Clubs who responded, had also arranged activities online. Groups organising Eisteddfodau and festivals, Nursery groups and sports clubs were the community groups that were least likely to have organised activities online.

4.23 Merched y Wawr branches and community partnerships were the groups most likely to have adapted activities to hold them but not online, however this was only carried out by around one in ten of those groups.

4.24 Nursery groups and sports or outdoor recreation clubs were the community groups that were most likely to have either not been affected or to have resumed their activity by the time of the survey.

4.25 After asking the groups how they operated, they were asked to briefly describe how the group had been affected since the start of the first national lockdown. Many groups stated that they adapted their activities either to be online or to meet in person under the lockdown restrictions. There were examples of groups adopting new techniques and software so that they could continue. A number stated that they helped their members to be able to attend the online events and also helped others in the community to get online. Some stated that the numbers attending had fallen as they went online, whilst others stated that the numbers had increased.

4.26 Some groups stated that they adapted their activities so that they could meet in person outdoors or indoors, but with limits on the numbers and, in the case of outdoor activities, concern that the weather would change and that it wouldn’t be possible to continue. Some referred to the hope of being able to return to some sort of normality but that this would be with changes of some kind.

4.27 There were examples of groups facing financial difficulties. This was mainly due to venues being unable to charge rent, or being unable to raise funds as activities weren’t able to be held or had gone online. The numbers attending had fallen in some groups, which resulted in a loss of income. This had an impact on those relying on this funding to meet other costs.

4.28 There were examples of groups stepping into new areas of operating, such as producing plans in direct response to the pandemic by supporting vulnerable people or local businesses. In some cases, this had brought the groups new supporters. Some groups stated that they developed their plans to be suitable for online, and that numbers had increased in doing so. There was one example of organising virtual gigs which engaged new followers for the group, and other examples with new followers from beyond Wales. There were also examples of groups successfully fundraising. One group referred to their online plan to help non-Welsh speaking parents with their children’s Welsh medium education.

4.29 There were examples of groups being unable to meet due to the nature of their activities. These were mainly related to the arts (choirs/music and performance groups, festivals, eisteddfodau) or sports clubs. A number of other groups stated that their members were unable to attend due to the activities being online and that they lacked the tools or skills to participate.

4.30 Respondents also talked about the negative impact of the pandemic on the health and well-being of group members. In a number of cases, there had been attempts to address this by communicating online or on the phone, but it was highlighted that the groups missed the interpersonal and social aspects.

5. The experiences of groups that continued to operate

5.1 Of the 1,092 community groups that had participated in the survey, note that only 20% (213 groups) had been routed through to answer the series of questions about continuing to operate. Although more than 20% of the groups stated that they held ‘some’ activities, they also said that they had either not met, suspended the group, only kept in touch, had ended the group or were a newly formed group.

5.2 There seems to be a potential link between the arrangements and income of the groups and the success of the groups during this period. 31% of the community groups where all organisers received a salary continued to operate, compared to 24% of the groups where some organisers received a salary and 13% of the groups where all organisers were volunteers.

Support to operate

5.3 The community groups participating in the survey who had managed to undertake at least some activities in the period since the beginning of lockdown were asked whether their group had received any external support or advice to help them carry out their activities.

5.4 42% of the groups who had managed to undertake at least some activities reported that they had received some external support or advice to help them arrange their activities, 52% reported that they didn’t with 6% stated that they didn’t know.

5.5 The groups were then asked to describe the support they received. Of those who did, this was often called advice, guidance or information (usually relating to how they should operate). Some groups were provided with advice and others sought the advice for themselves. The advice or guidance mentioned was most commonly provided by local government or the group’s umbrella organisation (e.g. the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs, The Church in Wales, Mudiad Meithrin).

5.6 There were also a number of examples of technical support being offered (e.g. to use IT, to provide online training/resources, to obtain IT equipment). A number of community papers noted that they had received help to publish their paper online through Bro 360. Universities were noted as providing technical assistance for a number of learning groups, while the Mentrau Iaith were also noted as providing technical or practical assistance for community groups.

5.7 A small number of groups noted that they had received financial support. Some mentioning Welsh Government grants, others mentioning the UK Government’s furlough scheme. A couple of groups organising eisteddfodau or festivals noted that their financial support came from local businesses and individuals. Other grant providers mentioned were Mudiad Meithrin, Sport Wales, Arts Council of Wales and third sector voluntary organisations.

Effectiveness of the activities

5.8 The community groups who had managed to undertake at least some activities since the beginning of lockdown were asked to rate the effectiveness of those activities from the end of March 2020 until the time they participated in this survey. As mentioned in para. 5.1, only a fifth of the community groups who participated in this survey had managed to undertake activities and had therefore been routed through to this question. The responses to the question are shown in Chart 5.1

Chart 5.1: How effective were the activities of the group during this period.

5.9 Of the groups that had undertaken at least some activities since the start of lockdown, 63% of groups where all organisers were volunteers said that they weren’t as effective as usual, compared to 39% of groups where the organisers received a salary.

5.10 If we were to assume that the groups who had not managed to carry out any activities would also report that they had not been as effective as usual, then only 3% of the community groups that existed before March 2020 who responded to this survey reported being ‘more effective than usual‘.

5.11 The groups were invited to note their reasons for their responses. Of those groups who stated they were ‘more effective than usual‘, a number explained that they had

helped their communities (e.g. volunteering for those who were shielding, nursery groups looking after key worker’s children) and that they felt appreciated. Some groups explained that they had been able to reach a wider audience than usual online and others mentioned being able to ‘meet’ more often online and the benefits of not having to travel.

Successful activities

5.12 The community groups who had managed to undertake at least some activities since the beginning of lockdown were asked whether they felt the group had accomplished any successful activities. Three quarters (75%) of those who responded reported that they did, 13% that they didn’t and a further 12% didn’t know.

5.13 The groups were invited to note their main achievements. When talking about what they considered to be achievements, a number of respondents stated how they adapted their activities to be held online. This was relevant to a range of different ages.

5.14 Some community papers provided information about how they set about continuing to create content, hold meetings and produce issues of the paper to be available online, but a small number of respondents also stated that they were unable to adapt to get their community paper online during lockdown.

5.15 A large number of respondents stated that Welsh learning activities continued online successfully. It was mentioned that a number of participants continued to gain confidence by attending online Welsh learning sessions, and that some companies were able to provide virtual Welsh learning sessions within their companies. There were examples of other successful activities in relation to learning Welsh, such as weekly chats, reading books, and quizzes.

5.16 A number of groups stated that they were able to continue providing their participants with some kind of education throughout lockdown, whether by holding virtual sessions, or by providing learning kits for children, and producing new resources such as videos. Some other groups stated that they also upskilled their participants to enable them to use virtual software.

5.17 A large number of groups explained how they established arrangements to support their community. Examples included a community mobile phone to keep in touch, maintaining and supporting foodbanks, supporting the most vulnerable individuals by

providing company and food, and creating a Sunday lunch club. Respondents mentioned the positive impact of this support on raising community spirit and contributing to well-being.

5.18 Some respondents told us about their arts activities. There were examples of groups adapting their activities into virtual ones, and a wide range of ages participated. There were also examples of performances or events being developed to be held virtually, such as drama productions, religious services and eisteddfodau. Festivals were held online, and music and choral rehearsals continued in some cases. Groups had distributed art and craft kits to a wide range of the population such as children and young people and care home residents.

5.19 A variety of groups stated that they had expanded their audience or gained more members. Some, such as Welsh learning groups, stated that they were able to reach individuals worldwide, whilst others said that they had expanded more locally, by getting parents to attend online groups who would otherwise be unable to attend. Some groups said that there had been no change to their membership, whilst others said that not everyone could join them due to a lack of access to IT equipment or internet access.

Unsuccessful activities

5.20 The same community groups were also asked whether any of the activities their group held since the end of March 2020 were unsuccessful. 30% of those who responded reported that some of their activities were unsuccessful, 52% that they weren’t and a further 18% didn’t know.

5.21 The groups were invited to provide details about their unsuccessful activities. Some felt frustrated that they were unable to hold their normal activities (such as choir practice or sports group training) and that it wasn’t possible to adapt these activities for online. Some stated a lack of commitment to the online sessions and that this was the case for a range of groups and ages (for example, parent and child groups, groups with older members). The reasons for this varied, with a small number stating the challenge of maintaining young children’s focus in online sessions, and others stating the unwillingness of some of the older generation to use technology.

Meeting frequency

5.22 The community groups who had undertaken activities since the beginning of lockdown were asked whether their group had ‘met’ or arranged group activities more frequently or less frequently than before the lockdown period. The responses to the question are shown in Chart 5.2

Chart 5.2: How often the group ‘met’ since the beginning of lockdown.

5.23 While 14% of the community groups stated that they had been able to meet more often, the rest were evenly split between ,meeting as often as they usually did and meeting less often

How many participate in the group’s activities

5.24 The community groups that had undertaken activities since the beginning of lockdown were asked how many had participated in their group’s activities and whether this was more or less than the numbers who used to participate before lockdown. The responses to the question are shown in Chart 5.3

Chart 5.3: How people had participated in the group’s activities after the beginning of lockdown, compared with before that period.

5.25 For around half of the community groups that had undertaken activities, and responded to this question, fewer people had participated in their group’s activities than used to before lockdown. 28% reported no change in the number of participants and 17% noted that they had a greater number of participants.

Has the language of the group changed?

5.26 The community groups that operated in Welsh and had undertaken activities since March 2020 were asked whether the language of the group had changed.

Chart 5.4: Has the language of the group changed since the beginning of lockdown.

5.27 For the vast majority (90%) of the community groups responding to this question the language of the group had not changed. 4% expressed using more Welsh, while a 6% stated that they had used less Welsh.

New audience

5.28 To establish whether the community groups that had undertaken activities since the beginning of lockdown (at the end of March 2020) had been able to attract a different audience, the groups participating in the survey were asked to describe the people who participated in their group activities. The responses to the question are shown in Chart 5.5

Chart 5.5: The participants of the group’s activities after the beginning of lockdown, compared with before that period.

5.29 For around half of the community groups that had undertaken activities, and responded to this question, the participants were generally the people who usually took part in the group’s activities. 45% of the responding groups noted that their activities over this period had attracted some new people, along with their usual participants. Only 2% of the groups noted that their activities attracted a new audience.

5.30 The groups were invited to provide further details about the audiences that they had attracted to the group. Some said that past members had re-joined due to the convenience of attending online sessions, and a small number said that their audience had expanded to include members from outside of Wales. A very small number said that they hadn’t attended the online sessions for reasons such as time or availability, a lack of technology or lack of IT skills.

6. The experiences of the groups that did not operate

6.1 80% of participating community groups said that they had not operated after the start of lockdown in late March 2020. This means that their group had not met, that their group was suspended or that they had only kept in touch with the group.

6.2 These community groups were subsequently asked what their reasons were for not carrying on operating as a group in some way when the lockdown period started. The reasons given are shown in Chart 6.1.

Chart 6.1: Reasons for not operating after the start of lockdown (a)

(a) Note that the groups were able to select more than one response, and therefore the responses do not add to 100%

6.3 By far, the most common reason given for not having operated as a group in some way when the lockdown period started, was that it was ‘not practical to continue under the Covid-19 restrictions and regulations’. This was noted by 93% of the responding community groups who had not continued to operate when the lockdown started.

6.4 The next most commonly noted response was that members were feeling afraid or not feeling safe, this was noted by 28% of the groups, 17% noted that it was impossible to adapt the activity of their group, while 13% noted that the members lacked digital skills and that the members did not want to meet online. 9% reported both lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources and lack of digital skills to

maintain the group. Only 4% noted that the group numbers had fallen and 2% gave the ‘lack of volunteers’ as reasons for not operating as a group when the lockdown period started.

6.5 Community councils were the only group to not have ‘it’s not practical to continue under the Covid-19 restrictions and regulations’ as their most common reason for not operating when the lockdown period started. Despite this around half of them did give this as a reason. Their most commonly noted response was ‘lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources’, with around two thirds stating this, and a quarter stating that they or their members lacked digital skills. Chart 6.2 shows the ‘digital’ reasons given by other groups for not operating.

Chart 6.2: ‘Digital’ reasons for not operating after the start of lockdown (a)

(a) Note that the groups were able to select more than one response, and therefore the responses do not add to 100%

6.6 Religious groups and Merched y Wawr branches were the most likely to give ‘digital reasons’ for not being able to operate, while only a small proportion of nursery groups, Urdd groups, sports clubs, eisteddfodau and festivals and performance groups gave ‘digital’ reasons for not operating.

6.7 Religious groups, clubs and societies for the area and Merched y Wawr branches were the most likely to state that a lack of digital skills by both the organisers and the group members were reasons for not being able to operate, with around a quarter of them stating that their members lacked the skills and around one in six stating that they lacked the digital skills to maintain the group.

6.8 Whilst Young Farmers’ Clubs members did appear to have digital skills, they were the group most likely to state that their members did not ‘want’ to meet online. 42% of them gave this as their reason for not operating. 31% of the religious groups also gave this reason.

6.9 While community councils were by far the most likely to state ‘lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources’, as their reason for not operating, a fifth of the Mentrau Iaith and Young Farmers clubs also gave this reason.

6.10 22% of social initiatives/community partnerships, noted the ‘lack of volunteers’ as a reason for not operating when the lockdown period started. It is not known whether the lack of volunteers was due to the pandemic itself, or whether the pandemic meant that they needed a greater number of volunteers than before, or whether they lacked volunteers before the pandemic. A smaller proportion of ‘clubs for the area’ (7%) and Urdd groups (6%) also noted a ‘lack of volunteers’ as their reason.

6.11 22% of social initiatives/community partnerships, had also noted that ‘their group numbers had fallen’. Once again it is not known whether this was due to the pandemic, or whether their numbers were in decline before the pandemic. A smaller proportion of ‘Community papers’ (15%), Nursery groups (13%) and Young farmers Clubs (11%) also noted their group numbers had fallen’ as their reason.

6.12 A third of the social initiatives/community partnerships and Mentrau Iaith who responded to this survey and had not operated once lockdown began stated that they found their activities ‘impossible to adapt’. This was also noted by 28% of interest groups, 26% of Young farmers Clubs, 26% of sports clubs, 24% of choirs and 22% of clubs or societies for the area.

6.13 Chart 6.3 shows the proportion of groups who stated that their members felt afraid or unsafe as their reason for not operating.

Chart 6.3: Percentage of groups that said their reason for not operating was that their members felt unsafe or afraid, by type of group

6.14 Social initiatives/community partnerships, religious groups and Merched y Wawr branches were the most likely to state that their ‘members felt afraid or unsafe’ as their reason for not operating. Urdd groups, parent and toddler groups and youth and children’s groups were least likely to state this as their reason. This is likely to be due to the age groups of the group members.

6.15 The community groups that had not operated in some way when lockdown started were subsequently invited to provide further details to explain their situation. Of those respondents who offered additional information, some mentioned that their group or organisation includes older members, some of whom were vulnerable in terms of health. They also mentioned their lack of IT skills or confidence to participate in online activities.

6.16 Some respondents reported issues relating to lockdown rules as reasons for not continuing to operate. Sports clubs or groups, as well as choirs, were prominent in these responses. A specific issue relating to the rules was a venue or building being too small for social distancing. Some respondents mentioned the challenge of maintaining the group’s momentum or interest, and of coming up with new ideas for activities.

6.17 Another factor mentioned by respondents was financial difficulties or restrictions. These included the challenge of sustainability with reduced numbers attending, and that normal methods of fundraising or funding were unable to continue.

Groups that came to an end

6.18 1% of the community groups who participated in this survey reported that they had ended the group since the end of March 2020 (as shown on Chart 4.2). This equates to only 7 survey responses. Of these only 3 provided a reason for ending the group. One noted a lack of volunteers, one explained about the difficulties of maintaining a group of parents during the lockdown period when parents were juggling home schooling and work and the other explained that the group was raising money for an eisteddfod which was cancelled, and had therefore served its purpose for the time being.

7. Views on the future of groups

The future, if social distancing rules continued?

7.1 The community groups participating in this survey were asked how likely it was for their group will continue if the current rules on social distancing continue to exist in a year’s time. A third (33%) of the groups said they were ‘very likely’ to continue, and over a quarter (29%) felt they were ‘quite likely’ to continue.

Chart 7.1: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules continued to be in place in a year’s time

7.2 The views of the groups varied by type of group, with community papers, Mentrau Iaith and community councils more likely to indicate that the group would be likely to continue to exist in a year, compared to clubs about the area, choirs, social groups and performing groups. This can be seen on Chart 7.2.

7.3 When considering the ‘type’ of activities the groups carried out, only around a half of the groups that held musical rehearsals, performance rehearsals and who organised eisteddfodau or festivals felt they were likely to be able to continue if the current restrictions on social distancing continued to exist in a years’ time. Whereas over 80% of the groups that held online activities, produced a community paper, organised work for the area or volunteered in the community felt they would be able to continue.

Chart 7.2: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules continued to be in place in a year’s time, by type of group

7.4 The community groups were then invited to provide further details to explain their response to this question. Of those who offered further details a number of groups explained how they had adapted in order to operate during lockdown. This included online or virtual activities. Other groups reported that they operated outdoors, with some mentioning the approaching winter period and adverse weather as a consideration. Some groups said that they had already put safety measures in place. Some of the nursery groups and Ti a Fi groups said that children weren’t required to

follow social distancing, only parents and assistants. Some referred to opportunities to do more or resume once the current restrictions had ended.

7.5 Of those who responded, a number referred to specific resources. Finance was a common theme, with some groups reporting a lack of funding, but others said that their finances were sustainable, referring to the financial support they had received through grants. Some reported a lack of suitable meeting place and facilities, or that their current meeting place was unsuitable, for example, that it was too small, or that it was owned by another group and currently unavailable. However, others reported having access to a suitable meeting place.

7.6 There were some references to specific rules or restrictions preventing groups from holding their usual activities, with some reporting that the rules had prevented them from operating at all. These included restrictions on singing, meeting indoors, and face to face activities. Some referred to the restrictions in terms of being able to hold activities in affected schools.

7.7 Some groups reported that their members were elderly or vulnerable, and that they may not be confident to meet up for quite a while yet. Others mentioned a loss of numbers, or members losing interest. The need to discuss plans for the future with members was also mentioned.

7.8 A range of views were expressed by respondents, with some mentioning hope for the future, or about the history or importance of their work, and others talking instead about uncertainty for the future.

The future, if social distancing rules did not continue?

7.9 The community groups were then asked how likely their groups were of continuing if those rules weren’t in place in a year’s time. 88% of the participating groups felt that their group was likely to still exist in a year’s time if the rules were not in place.

7.10 However, 7% of the participating groups felt that it was unlikely their groups would still exist in a year’s time, even if the social distancing rules were not in place (4% felt it was ‘quite unlikely’ and 3% that it was ‘very unlikely’). A further 6% said they didn’t know. Chart 7.3 shows the likelihood of each type of group feeling that they would be able to continue if the rules were not in place in a year’s time.

Chart 7.3: Likelihood the group will still exist if the current social distancing rules were not in place in a year’s time, by type of group

7.11 As can be seen in Chart 7.3, the vast majority of all group types felt they were likely to continue if there were no social distancing rules in existence in a year’s time. All of the Young Farmers Clubs and community councils responding to this survey felt they were likely to continue. The groups that were a little less certain of their future were the fundraising groups, learning groups and clubs for the areas, where 19%, 18%, and 14% respectively felt they were unlikely to continue even if the rules on social distancing did not exist.

7.12 The community groups were invited to provide further details to explain their thoughts about the future of their group if the social distancing rules did not exist in a year’s time. Note however that this question was only asked of those groups who had initially said that their group was unlikely to continue if the rules on social distancing existed in a year’s time.

7.13 Of those respondents who offered further details, many referred to the difference between the regulations ending, and the pandemic ending. Some were concerned about safety, even if the restrictions were lifted. Of these, some mentioned the potential of a vaccine as something that would make the situation safer.

7.14 Related to concerns about safety, some talked about the age or vulnerability of their members. Some also said that they needed new members or volunteers to help out, and that they were concerned that the groups had lost numbers or momentum during lockdown. However, others said that members wanted to meet again, referring also to the importance of the work to them.

7.15 Some raised concerns about finance, or a suitable meeting place, especially those relying on a venue owned by another organisation. Being part of an umbrella organisation was helpful for some.

7.16 Some mentioned the possibility of adapting by, for example, organising activities online, or providing some elements of their activities.

7.17 Some reported uncertainty about the future, and what could be introduced instead of the current restrictions, with some of these mentioning certain rules which could hinder them from operating.

Future operation

7.18 The community groups participating in the survey were asked how they thought their group would operate in a year’s time if the rules on social distancing did not exist. Note that the groups who thought they were very unlikely to continue were not asked this question. The most common response given was to adopt some new ways of working, but to generally continue as before. Just under half of the groups (45%) gave this response. 31% expressed they would return to operating exactly as they were 13% stated they would adopt several new ways of operating, while 10% said it was difficult to tell. Only very few of the groups said they would change their way of operating completely (1%). This is shown by group type in Chart 7.4.

Chart 7.4: How the group will operate if the current social distancing rules were not in place in a year’s time, by type of group

7.19 The only type of group with over half saying that they would go back to operating exactly as they were was community councils. None of the Mentrau Iaith or fundraising groups said that they would go back to operating exactly as they were. The Mentrau Iaith were more likely than any other group to say that they would adopt several new ways of operating.

7.20 The groups were invited to provide further details to explain how they expected their group to operate if the social distancing rules did not exist in a year’s time. Some reported that they would continue to hold activities online, as they had done during lockdown. Examples of this included holding online meetings, and distributing digital community papers. Some respondents mentioned the benefits of holding some activities online, such as environmental benefits. According to some respondents holding activities online made it easier for some to be able to attend, particularly for people from rural areas.

7.21 A very large number wanted to continue practices such as social distancing and general hygiene maintenance (such as regular hand washing and sanitising equipment). This was very evident in some groups, such as nursery groups. Some said that this could give people the confidence to attend activities in person again. Some referred to the additional cost of adapting to new ways of operating. This included the cost of purchasing cleaning and sanitising equipment.

7.22 Other new ways of operating were also mentioned, including holding activities outdoors when possible, and holding activities in larger venues or rooms.

7.23 Of those who felt uncertain about the future of their group, a large number said that this would depend on the availability of a vaccine. Some also said that guidance would be required closer to the time before being able to decide whether or not to continue their activities. Some of these respondents said that the future of their group also depended on attracting more members, including younger members. Performance groups in particular said that continuing their activities could be challenging if social distancing rules continued to be in place.

7.24 A small number of respondents said that they did not see a future for their group. This included religious groups, and learning groups or classes.

What could help the groups?

7.25 The community groups that took part in the survey were asked what could help them as a group to continue and thrive in the future. A prominent factor was that groups wanted to be allowed to start meeting again, and wanted clear guidance on how to do so safely. Of those who provided a response, many said that their members needed to feel confident in returning to the group.

7.26 Some reported that they were looking forward to resuming the activities (although some were aware that the activities may not be exactly the same as they were before lockdown). The key issue highlighted in these comments was that they hoped people would be able to meet up whilst keeping everybody safe.

7.27 A number of groups said that factors directly relating to the virus itself would help them continue and thrive in the future. A number of them mentioned that a vaccine would support their efforts, whilst others said that they would only be able to continue safely if social distancing came to an end or if the virus came to an end.

7.28 A small number said that they hoped to continue by, for example, holding activities outdoors, changing venue in order to be able to meet up whilst adhering to social distancing restrictions, or changing the size of their groups in order to meet social distancing rules.

7.29 Respondents referred to the need to develop group members’ access to technology as well as upskilling their members on how to use technology as a way of continuing with the group’s activities online. Of those who provided a response about this a small number reported that some of their members were older, and even if they had internet access, they may not have the appropriate equipment to join sessions via apps such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams or the necessary skills to use those tools. Some said that they wanted to adapt their groups to operate more online, including testing new ideas with the available technology, but that they needed investment or funding to achieve this.

7.30 A number of respondents referred to the need for funding to be able to continue. Some groups hoped for investment for resources, rent payments, investment in technology or relocation. Many were concerned about the need for certainty regarding permanent funding and others were concerned about the losses that they had already suffered due to having to close during lockdown. A very small number said that they felt confident as they had received a grant or continuation of funding.

7.31 Overall, many said that raising awareness of their group would help them in terms of success and sustainability. The stated reasons included: - the need to engage more parents with childcare settings; - how to market the group to engage new members; - advertising activities (whether current or new activities); - further promoting the Welsh language; - recruiting new members (in many cases, there was a need for younger members).

7.32 A small number stated that they believed that working in collaboration with larger groups and/or organisations would help them succeed in future. Others reported that they wanted to continue holding activities due to the clear benefits for the well-being of members.

Lessons learnt

7.33 All community groups participating in this survey were asked whether they had learnt any lessons since the start of the lockdown period (at the end of March 2020), which would put them in a better position to respond if there were another lockdown in the future.

7.34 43% of those who responded stated that they had, 27% that they hadn’t and 30% stated that they did not know. Chart 7.5 shows the responses to this question by group type.

Chart 7.5: Did the groups learn any lessons, by type of group

7.35 Chart 7.5 shows that the Mentrau Iaith, Community councils, nursery groups and learning groups were most likely to feel that they had learnt lessons which would put them in a better position to respond in the future. Choirs, clubs for the area and social groups were the least likely to report any lessons learnt.

7.36 The community groups participating in this survey who reported having learnt lessons were subsequently asked to describe those lessons. There were also some cases of respondents offering relevant information despite not answering ‘yes’ to this question.

7.37 The lessons described referred to specific skills or knowledge that they had gained during lockdown, and also encompassed ‘lessons learnt’ in terms of having benefitted from their experience in some way. Respondents reported lessons relating to the use of technology. Learning how to use digital platforms to hold virtual meetings was a prominent element in these responses. Others said that they had increased their use of digital communication methods more widely. Some respondents commented that they were considering or saw value in continuing to operate, at least partly, online beyond the pandemic.

7.38 For some the lessons learnt involved safety considerations and measures to prevent the spread of the virus. These respondents believed they were well-positioned to take action in the future as they had a better understanding of issues such as social distancing, and cleaning and sanitising arrangements.

7.39 A small number of respondents reported lessons learnt in terms of financial sustainability during the restrictions. These issues included the importance of reserves; being aware of new ways of securing funding or fundraising, and the need to meet new costs (including for safety and sanitising equipment, and training to improve digital skills). One feature that emerged in various ways in the comments was that the restrictions had highlighted the importance of being part of a community and keeping in touch. For some, being unable to keep in touch and socialise in the usual ways had made them realise how important this was for them. For others, the activities they had undertaken during the restrictions to help and support members of the community had highlighted the value of that support.

8. The new groups

8.1 The main aim of the research was to understand the impact of Covid-19 on the community groups that were already in existence before the pandemic. However, since the beginning of the first UK-wide lockdown at the end of March 2020, some new groups had been established, and indeed 15 of these newly formed groups did participate in this survey.

8.2 The newly formed groups participating in the survey were varied in terms of their members, their purpose and their interest, but the majority had one thing in common, they were groups who arranged to meet virtually. Only one of the newly formed groups organised activities outside.

8.3 The groups included a literature group, history group, a religious group, a social group, an interest group, a few groups for parents and their children and a few groups for learning to speak Welsh.

8.4 These new groups were asked whether they thought they would continue as a group if the current rules on social distancing did not exist in a year’s time. Most of the new groups felt that it was likely they would continue to exist. Some of the groups commented that it would be possible to continue online and some stated that that the activity would probably change to be a face-to-face one if the situation allowed. Some commented that the group would only continue if there was a demand for it.

8.5 When asked how they expected the group to operate, once again some talked about continuing online, others about holding face-to-face activities and some expressed a wish to have a mix of both online and face-to-face activities.

8.6 The new groups who responded were subsequently asked what would help them as a group to continue and thrive in the future. The responses provided included more online resources, the ability to meet face to face, retaining the contacts that had been created, funding to cover their costs, a list of suitable locations to carry out their activities and assistance to promote their activities/opportunities well locally.

9. Conclusions

The situation before the pandemic

9.1 While we will never know exactly how many community groups there are in Wales who operate in Welsh, the Mentrau Iaith, with their better knowledge of the those groups on a local level had identified 2,806 of them to invite them to participate in the online survey.

9.2 1,092 community groups responded to this survey in the three week period from the 14th September to 9th October. This demonstrates to some degree that even during these particularly difficult times for communal gatherings, that there is a commitment towards these community groups and a desire to ensure that they can withstand the pressures brought about by this pandemic.

9.3 However, it should be noted that groups who did respond to this survey may be different to those who did not respond and therefore any findings should only be seen as indicators of the situation for community groups since the start of the pandemic rather than definitive findings.

9.4 Of the groups who responded to this survey, a majority of them (55%) reported that they were run by volunteers alone, with a number of them relying on 20 volunteers or more. The majority of the volunteers for religious groups, interest groups, community papers, groups for the areas, groups who organised eisteddfods and Merched y Wawr branches were over the age of 70. .

9.5 The groups varied in size, with over a third of the Young Farmers’ Clubs, choirs, Urdd groups and sports or outdoor recreation clubs involving over 40 participants, whereas learning groups and nursery groups tended to involve fewer than 10. Over half of the groups who responded met at least once every week.

9.6 In the two years leading up to lockdown, most of the groups (59%) reported that their numbers had been stable. 28% had increased in size while 13% had reduced in size. Religious groups and community papers were most likely to have reduced in size.

9.7 Only 2% of the groups who respond reported holding any online activities before the end of March 2020. This illustrated how considerable a task it was for some of these groups to adapt their activities in light of this pandemic

9.8 Prior to the pandemic, people aged 50 to 69 were most likely to participate in community group activities and females were far more likely to participate than

males. Females were significantly more likely to organise fundraising campaigns, go on trips, volunteer in the community and were twice as likely to attend parent and child groups.

Operating during the pandemic

9.9 For all the activities carried out by community groups, the vast majority (68%) had not been carried out at all since the start of the lockdown period. Organised trips, festivals / eisteddfodau, fundraising campaigns, performances and musical rehearsals were most likely not to take place.

9.10 16% of the activities had been adapted to be held online and 5% had adapted the activity but not held it online Learning activities, were the most likely to have been carried out online (31% held online) while volunteering in the community was most likely to be adapted but not held online (usually carried out ‘outside’).

9.11 When thinking about the community groups, as opposed to their activities, over 80% of the groups had not operated since the beginning of lockdown. By this, we mean that they either had not met as a group, that the group was temporarily suspended, that they had ‘only kept in touch’, or they had ended the group completely. Community groups organising Eisteddfodau or festivals, Urdd groups and fundraising groups, were most likely not to have operated in this time.

9.12 The community groups where the organisers received a salary were more likely to have continued to operate than those groups that were reliant on volunteers.

9.13 A quarter of the groups expressed that they had adapted their usual activity to be held online – most of the Mentrau Iaith and around half of the learning groups, community papers and Young Farmers Clubs had also arranged activities online.

The experiences of the groups that continued to operate

9.14 Of the 20% of the groups that expressed that they had been able to operate in some way since lockdown began:

 Less than half had (42%) had received some external support or advice to help them arrange their activities  Overall, they felt that they were less effective, met less often and that fewer people participated in their activities  Despite this, 75% reported that they’d accomplished at least some successful activities, while 30% reported that some of their activities were unsuccessful  45% noted that their activities had attracted some new people, along with their usual participants, with half reporting to attract the usual people

The experiences of the groups that did not operate

9.15 Of the 80% of community groups who had not continued to operate once lockdown began at the end of March 2020:

 93% stated that the reason for this was ‘not practical to continue under the Covid- 19 restrictions and regulations’,  28% reported that their members were feeling afraid or not feeling safe,  17% noted that it was impossible to adapt the activity of their group,  13% noted that the members lacked digital skills and 9% that the organisers lacked digital skills to maintain the group,  13% noted that their members did not want to meet online, and  9% reported both lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources.

9.16 Religious groups and Merched y Wawr branches were the most likely to give ‘digital reasons’ for not being able to operate, while only a small proportion of nursery groups, Urdd group, sports clubs, eisteddfodau and festivals and performance groups gave ‘digital’ reasons for not operating.

9.17 Young Farmers’ Clubs members did appear to have digital skills, yet they were most likely to state that their members did not ‘want’ to meet online.

9.18 Social initiatives/community partnerships, religious groups and Merched y Wawr branches were the most likely to state that their ‘members felt afraid or unsafe’ as their reason for not operating. Urdd groups, parent and toddler groups and youth and children’s groups were least likely to state this as their reason.

Views on the future

9.19 62% of the groups said that they were likely to continue if the social distancing rules were still in place in a year’s time. The community papers, Mentrau Iaith and community councils were most likely to feel that they could continue, whilst clubs for the area, choirs, social groups and performance groups were less confident about their future.

9.20 88% of the groups that took part in the survey felt that their group was likely to still exist in a year’s time if the rules were not in place. 7% of the groups felt that it was unlikely their group would still exist in a year’s time, even if the social distancing rules were not in place. The groups that felt most uncertain about their future were the fundraising groups, learning clubs and clubs for the area, with 19%, 18%, and 14% respectively feeling that they were unlikely to continue even if the social distancing rules were not in place.

9.21 If the social distancing rules were not in place in a year’s time, 45% said that they would adopt some new ways of operating, but that overall they would continue as before. 31% said that they would return to operating exactly as before. The Mentrau Iaith were more likely than any other type of group to say that they would adopt several new ways of operating.

9.22 The groups reported that ensuring the safety of members when reopening was the main factor which would help them as a group to continue and thrive in the future. Many groups also mentioned that support to develop their use of IT tools; support to upskill their members to access on-line activities; additional or continuous funding, and support to advertise or raise awareness about their groups would help them continue and thrive in the future.

Annex: The effects of Covid-19 on Welsh language community groups – questionnaire The coronavirus pandemic has affected community life everywhere. The purpose of this survey is to understand the impact of the Covid-19 restrictions on groups, organisations and societies, which either promote the Welsh language, or provide an opportunity for people to use the Welsh language in the community.

This questionnaire asks about your community group (society, organisation, committee, club, ‘aelwyd’ or choir). We want to find out how the lockdown, which started at the end of March 2020, and the subsequent restrictions have affected you, how you have adapted your activities, and what your intentions are for the future.

Your responses will be used to help the Welsh Government and Mentrau Iaith (Welsh language agencies) know what they need to do to safeguard opportunities to use the Welsh language on a community level in the future. It will not be possible to identify you nor your group in any publication of the findings, unless you have provided your explicit consent for the Welsh Government or your local Menter Iaith to do so.

If you want more information about how your responses will be processed, click here For further information, please contact the Welsh Government on 03000 256682 or e-mail: [email protected]

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Your community group

If you do not want the Welsh Government or your local Menter Iaith (language agency) to know that you have responded to this survey, please leave this question blank.

1. What is the name of your group, organisation, committee or society?

We ask this question so that we can monitor the type of groups which respond to this survey. The name of the group will be given to the Menter Iaith (language agency) for your area, so that they know not to send you reminder messages to obtain your response to the survey. The name of your group will not be published in our publications, unless you give us explicit permission to do so.

Note: for the rest of the questionnaire any reference to ‘your group’ refers to the response you provided to this question.

2. Is your group run by a Menter Iaith or supported by a Menter Iaith? Yes  No  Don’t know 

3. What type of group, organisation or society are you? Menter Iaith  Choir / music group  Young Farmers’ Club  Religious club / movement  Aelwyd / Adran yr Urdd  Sports club  Merched y Wawr branch  Interest group  Nursery Group  Learning group / class  Community paper  Youth group  Fundraising club/group  Book club  Eisteddfodau  Literary group  Social Initiative / Community Partnership  Other group / organisation (please specify)  Club / Society / Organisation for the area 

4. In which area does your group operate? Select all areas that apply Isle of Anglesey  Swansea  Gwynedd  Neath Port Talbot  Conway  Bridgend  Denbighshire  The Vale of Glamorgan  Flintshire  Cardiff  Wrexham  Rhondda Cynon Taf  North Powys – Montgomery area  Merthyr Tydfil  South Powys – Brecon area  Caerphilly  Ceredigion  Blaenau Gwent  Pembrokeshire  Torfaen  West Carmarthenshire  Monmouthshire  Carmarthenshire – Dinefwr area  Newport  Carmarthenshire – Gwendraeth Valley  Other (please specify below)  Carmarthenshire – Llanelli area 

Before the lockdown period (before March 2020)

5. Did your group exist before the Covid-19 lockdown period at the end of March 2020?

Yes  Q6 No  Q33

6. Is your group run by volunteers?

Yes, only by volunteers  Q7 Some receive a wage, some volunteer  Q7 Everyone who runs the group receives a wage  Q9 Other arrangement (provide details below)  Q9

7. How many volunteers help to run your group?

8. What is the general age range of the volunteers who organise and run your group? You can select more than one age category if it is difficult to choose one Under 18  50-59  18-24  60-69  25-29  70+  30-49 

(Menter Iaith – Q13)

9. How many people were usually involved in your group? Under 10  30-39  10-19  40+  20-29 

10. How often did you usually meet?

More often than once a week  Less often than once a  Every week  On an ad-hocmonth basis  Every fortnight  Other (please specify  Every month  below)

11. In the two years before lockdown (before March 2020), how would you describe the numbers attending your group? Numbers had increased significantly  Numbers had reduced significantly  Numbers had increased a little  The group was fairly new  Numbers were stable  Don’t know  Numbers had reduced a little 

12. In what language does the group usually operate? Always/almost always in Welsh  Mainly in Welsh  Fairly equally in Welsh and English  Mainly in English  Always/almost always in English  Other (provide details) 

13. What were the main activities being held by your group prior to the lockdown period (before March 2020)? Select all relevant boxes Organising social events (indoors)  Organising trips  (e.g. coffee morning, cheese and wine evening, pub quiz, lunch, dance) Organising social events (outside)  Organising religious activities/meetings  (e.g. walks, treasure hunt) Running parent and child groups  Organising activities/meetings of groups  (e.g. nursery group, play group, singing and dancing groups) with shared interests (e.g. literary group, book club, history group, cooking club, sewing group, arts and crafts club) Holding musical rehearsals  Producing a community paper  (e.g. singing, choir, playing music, band rehearsals) (papur bro) Holding other performance rehearsals  Organising events / performances  (e.g. drama/theatre group, preparing for eisteddfodau/concerts) (e.g. plays, theatre show, pantomime, comedy night concerts, brethyn cartref, noson lawen, gig or live band) Holding learning activities  Organising work to improve the area  (e.g. classes, lessons, workshops or courses) (e.g. environmental projects, regeneration/community development work, economic development projects) Holding leisure activities  Holding online activities  (e.g. sports, keep fit, competitions, dancing) (i.e. before the lockdown) Organising festivals / eisteddfodau  Organise fundraising campaigns  (e.g. cultural festival, literary festival, food festival or agricultural show)

Volunteering to help others in the community  Other activity (please specify below) 

14. Who usually came to the (each activity provided in Q11 in turn)? Select all relevant boxes Males  Secondary school children aged 11-15  Females  Young people aged 16- 24  Families  People aged 25-29  Welsh learners/new Welsh  People aged 30-49  Businessesspeakers  People aged 50-59  People who live in a specific area  People aged 60-69  Children/babies 0-4 years of age  People aged 70+  Junior school children 5-11 years  old

The lockdown period and the subsequent restrictions

15. Have you been {each response provided in Q11 in turn} since the start of the lockdown period (at the end of March 2020)? No, not done so since the start of lockdown  Suspended the activity at the start of lockdown, but have now restarted  Adapted the activity so it could be held online  Adapted the activity so it could be held online at the start of lockdown, but have  now returned to our usual practice Adapted the activity due to Covid-19, but not held online  Have continued to hold the activity as usual  Other (please specify) 

16. Thinking about your group in its entirety, how has your group operated since the beginning of the lockdown period (end of March 2020)? Select all relevant boxes Not met/ group temporarily suspended  Q27 Only kept in touch with the group Q27 (e.g. social media, e-mail, telephone)  Adapted our usual arrangements/activities to be held online  Q17 Adapted our usual arrangements/activities, but not held online  Q17 Held new activities online  Q17 Held new activities, but not online  Q17 The lockdown and restrictions have not affected the group  Q17 Group was suspended initially, but has now resumed  Q27 We have ended the group  Q25 Other  Q17

Briefly describe how the group has been affected since the beginning of the lockdown period (end of March 2020).

17. Did your group have any external support or advice to help you hold your activities? Yes  No  Don’t know 

If yes, what support did you have and from who?

18. In your opinion, how effective were the activities of the group during this period (since the end of March 2020)?

More effective than usual  As effective as usual  Not as effective as usual 

Don’t know 

Note your reasons for your response.

19. In your opinion, did the group accomplish any successful activities during this period (since the end of March 2020)? Yes  No  Don’t know 

If yes, note your main achievements.

20. When thinking about the activities your group has held since the end of March 2020, were any of the activities unsuccessful? Yes  No  Don’t know 

If yes, provide details below to explain.

21. Since the beginning of lockdown (at the end of March 2020), has your group ‘met’ or arranged group activities more frequently or less frequently than before the lockdown period? More frequently  As frequently as usual  Less frequently  Don’t know 

22. Since the beginning of lockdown (at the end of March 2020), have more or less people taken part in your group activities than used to do so before the lockdown period? More people  The same as usual  Less people  Don’t know 

23. Since the beginning of lockdown (at the end of March 2020), has the language in which the group operates changed? Yes, we use more Welsh  No, we use the same amount of Welsh as usual  Yes, we use less Welsh  Don’t know 

24. How would you describe the people who have taken part in your group activities since the beginning of lockdown (the end of March 2020)? They’re generally the people who usually take part  Q28 Some people who usually take part, and some new people  Q28 They’re generally people who haven’t taken part before  Q28 Don’t know  Q28

Please provide further details to explain your response.

25. What was the reason for suspending the group? Select all relevant boxes Not practical to continue under the Covid-19 restrictions and  Lack of digital skills to maintainregulations the group  Members of the group lacked digital skills  Lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources  Members feeling afraid or not feeling safe  Impossible to adapt the activity of the group  Lack of volunteers  Members not wanting to meet online  Numbers had fallen  Other 

Please provide further details to explain your response.

26. What, in your view, could have helped you to continue as a group?

Go to Q37

27. What was your reason for not carrying on operating as a group in some way when the lockdown period started? Select all relevant boxes Not practical to continue under the Covid-19 restrictions and  Lack of digital skills to maintainregulations the group  Members of the group lacked digital skills  Lack of provision (e.g. Broadband) / resources  Members feeling afraid or not feeling safe  Impossible to adapt the activity of the group  Lack of volunteers  Members not wanting to meet online  Numbers had fallen  Other 

Please provide further details to explain your response.

The future

28. In your view, if the current rules on social distancing continue to exist in a year’s time, how likely is it that your group will continue? Very likely  C30 Quite likely  C30 Quite unlikely  C29 Very unlikely  C29 Don’t know  C29

Please provide further details to explain your response.

29. In your view, if the current rules on social distancing do not continue to exist in a year’s time, how likely is it that your group will continue? Very likely  C30 Quite likely  C30 Quite unlikely  C30 Very unlikely  C31 Don’t know  C30

Please provide further details to explain your response.

30. In your view, if the current rules on social distancing do not continue to exist in a year’s time, how do you expect the group to operate?

Go back to operating exactly as we were  Adopt some new ways of operating, but generally continue as we were  Adopt several new ways of operating  Change our way of operating completely  Hard to tell/uncertain 

Please provide further details to explain your response.

31. What in your view could help you as a group to continue and thrive in the future?

32. Have you as a group learnt any lessons since the beginning of the lockdown period (end of March 2020), which would put you in a better position if there was another lockdown in the future? Yes  No  Don’t know 

If yes, what were those lessons?

New groups

33. Can you please describe how your group operated since the beginning of the lockdown period (end of March 2020)?

34. In your view, if the current rules on social distancing do not continue to exist in a year’s time, how likely is it that your group will continue? Very likely  Quite likely  Quite unlikely  Very unlikely  Don’t know 

Please provide further details to explain your response.

35. In your view, if the current rules on social distancing do not continue to exist in a year’s time, how do you expect the group to operate?

36. What in your view could help you as a group to continue and thrive in the future?

Your details

Thank you for taking part in this survey.

The Welsh Government may wish to contact you to discuss your responses to this survey in more detail, or to conducting further research about community groups operating in the Welsh language in the future. If you do not want us to contact your group, please submit your responses without providing your contact details.

37. What contact details should we use to get in touch with this group?

Contact name:

E-mail: Phone:

If you have any further comments or questions about this survey, please contact: [email protected]